As the world’s third richest person, Mr Buffett knows a thing or two about getting the most from your money.

However, it is how you perceive value that is key to how satisfied you are with your investment.

Take mobile phone plans as an example. When you shop around for a new plan, you realise that there are some cheap plans out there.

But does a low-cost plan translate into giving you the kind of value you are looking for?

This is where good customer service and network coverage come into play.

Communications consumer group, the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network’s (ACCAN) July report Can You Hear Me? looked at how satisfied customers were with their telcos.

“Nearly half the complaints received by the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) last year identified customer service as an issue, so we know it’s a source of considerable frustration,” said ACCAN CEO Teresa Corbin.

The results showed that 27 per cent of consumers couldn’t use their preferred contact method to solve an issue because they couldn’t find the details, only 58 per cent of people reported that their query was resolved during the first contact, and that customer service, communication and the attitude of staff were the largest areas that customers said needed improvement.

Pennytel CEO Rene Sugo said addressing these issues formed the basis for Pennytel’s relaunch earlier this year.

“Our plans are competitive price-wise, but we also have a very strong focus on customer service as we know that is a real value differentiator,” he said, pointing to CanStar Blue’s review of Pennytel which highlighted the provider’s longer-than-usual opening hours of its Australian call centre, and its streamlined plans.

“It’s important to us that our customer’s queries are solved the first time they call, which is helped by the fact that you will always talk to a human at Pennytel.